On the Power and Protections of Protest
April 21, 2024 Traceymay Kalvaitis
Psalm 23
The Lord is my shepherd; I shall not want.
On the Power and Protections of Protest
He maketh me to lie down in green pastures: he leadeth me beside the still waters.
He restoreth my soul: he leadeth me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil: for thou art with me; thy rod and thy staff they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
Acts 3: 1-9
One day Peter and John were going up to the temple at the time of prayer—at three in the afternoon. Now a man who was lame from birth was being carried to the temple gate called Beautiful, where he was put every day to beg from those going into the temple courts. When he saw Peter and John about to enter, he asked them for money. Peter looked straight at him, as did John. Then Peter said, “Look at us!” So the man gave them his attention, expecting to get something from them.
Then Peter said, “Silver or gold I do not have, but what I do have I give you. In the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth, walk.” Taking him by the right hand, he helped him up, and instantly the man’s feet and ankles became strong. He jumped to his feet and began to walk. Then he went with them into the temple courts, walking and jumping, and praising God. When all the people saw him walking and praising God, they recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.
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Today’s sermon is titled On the Power and Protections of Protest.
We begin with words from Alexandra Skochilenko; from a Russian prison she wrote, “I am deeply convinced that life is a great miracle.” Despite being arrested and sentenced to 7 years in
April 21, 2024 Traceymay Kalvaitis
a Russian prison, Six months ago, Alexandra Skochilenko was sentenced to 7 years for what has come to be known as the “price tag protest.” The 33-year-old illustrator was placing stickers that looked like price tags on items in the grocery store but her stickers had information about the war in Ukraine that was not reaching the Russian populace. Information such as the bombing of the hospital in Mariupol and the rising death toll of Russian soldiers. Some stickers Alexandra placed had anti-war messages, such as, “Violence is never the answer.”
One month after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine, in an effort to subdue the growing number of protests across Russia, changes to the legal code were signed into law by Vladamir Putin. These changes are known internationally as the “Russian War Censorship Laws.”** Violations of these laws carry mandatory sentences for up to 15 years for even calling the invasion of Ukraine a “war.” Amnesty International estimates that over 20,000 Russian protesters have been arrested under the new laws.
We heard about protesters this morning in our reading from the book of Acts. Peter and John, in commanding the lame man to walk, “in the name of Jesus Christ of Nazareth” acted in defiance by publicly speaking the name of their teacher. The disciples have been warned not to teach and preach in Jesus’s name and not to, under any circumstances, publicly speak about Jesus’s resurrection. Peter and John are not exactly keeping things on the down low when they go and heal a man outside of one of the busiest gates to the temple. The healed man follows them into the temple and attracts a great deal of attention. The scriptures say the people “recognized him as the same man who used to sit begging at the temple gate called Beautiful, and they were filled with wonder and amazement at what had happened to him.”
In that one act of healing in Jesus’s name Peter and John seal their fate. They are questioned, imprisoned, beaten upon their release with a warning to cease and desist. The apostles continue to preach and teach. The next time they are arrested, they are taken before the Sanhedrin Council. In Acts 4:18 we read the following, “They called [the apostles] in again and commanded them not to speak or teach at all in the name of Jesus. But Peter and John replied, ‘Which is right in God’s eyes: to listen to you, or to God? You be the judges! As for us, we cannot help speaking about what we have seen and heard.’”
The apostles refused to be silenced. Even under the threat of imprisonment and death, they refused to be silenced. Friends, we have inherited a religious tradition that is rooted in speaking truth to power. Jesus spoke truth to power, his apostles spoke truth to power and we as followers of Christ are called to keep speaking. Martin Luther spoke truth to power when he confronted the church in 1517, in part for selling indulgences as a fundraising tactic to build the opulent cathedrals. An indulgence was a forgiveness, kind of like a get-out-of-hell-free card, sold at a price and available to be purchased for someone living or previously deceased. Martin Luther’s protestations started the Protestant reformation. The word “protestant” comes from the Latin word protestari; pro which means before or in front of, and testari which means testify or to bear witness to.
In the United States, every mass movement for positive social change and social justice has been fueled in large part by religious convictions. The Revolutionary War insured religious freedom and eight years later the first ten amendments to our Constitution, the Bill of Rights, was signed into law. The very first amendment protects in this order (look closely) from laws establishing religion or prohibiting the free exercise of religion, freedom of speech, freedom of the press, and the freedom of the people to peaceably assemble and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances. ***
The apostles had no such protections. Alexandra Skochilenko, in Russia, has no such protections. You may be thinking it’s a good thing that in this country, we have protections in place. Last week we could have been more confident in that assertion. On Monday, the Supreme Court announced they would not be hearing the case of Mckesson vs. Doe. John Doe is the pseudonym for a police officer in Baton Rouge who was injured during a Black Lives Matter protest in 2016. A lower court ruled that the organizer of the protest, Mckesson, was liable for injuries to Officer Doe. Mckesson neither threw the rock that injured the officer, nor did Mckesson ask the rock be thrown, but the lower court ruled that simply because Mckesson organized the protest, he was liable for any damages committed by a third party. **** Here is the question: who in their right mind would organize any protest with the knowledge that they would be held liable for the actions of everyone who attends? No one would take that chance.
In the Supreme Court refusing to hear the case, the lower court decision stands, at least for now, across the entire circuit, and it applies to three states: Louisiana, Mississippi, and Texas.
Friends, our ancestors have pressed long and pressed hard for the rights we have come to expect. The Apostles described in the book of Acts are part of that long lineage; there were countless numbers that followed and countless numbers that refused to be silenced. Even under the threat of imprisonment, even under the threat of death, they refused to be silenced. God bless them, each and every one. I pray blessings on us all as we use our voices, and our votes, to protest injustice wherever and whenever we bear witness to it. Monadnock Interfaith Project is our partner in this work, striving to affect positive systemic change in our region like available housing, and more humane options for the homeless. There are big, complex problems in our culture that take time and perseverance to address, but there are smaller, more common injustices that happen in our presence all the time and we can right these injustices. It can be as simple as putting an end to gossip, or refusing to engage in negative conversation about someone who is not present. We are all presented with opportunities each day to stand up for what is right and kind and just. Remember, we come from a long line of protesters. May we exercise the power we have, and may we not forget the importance of our protections.
I close now with an adaptation of the 23rd Psalm as a Psalm for the Protesters of every age:
The Lord is my shepherd and I shall not remain silent when others are suffering.
The Lord leads me beside still waters and raging seas.
The Lord restores my soul and leads me in the paths of righteousness for his name’s sake.
Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of imprisonment and death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, thy rod and thy staff, they comfort me.
Thou preparest a table before me in the presence of mine enemies: thou anointest my head with oil; my cup runneth over.
Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life: and I will dwell in the house of the Lord for ever.
*https://www.themoscowtimes.com/2023/11/16/i-just-wanted-to-stop-the-war-russian-artist- sentenced-to-7-years-for-price-tag-protest-a83019 **https://www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2024/03/anti-war-protest-in-russia/#:~:text=Two %20years%20after%20the%20adoption,posts%20on%20social%20media%20increased.
*** “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
****https://www.aclu.org/press-releases/aclu-statement-on-supreme-court-decision-to-decline-to -hear-case-on-protestors-rights
Pastoral Prayer
Source of Love that we call God, we try to name you although you are nameless; we try to interpret you, even though you are unfathomable. Help us, Holy One, to be at peace with your vastness that can not be named and your message of unconditional love that includes us all, each and every one. For those who are ailing, we pray for comfort. For those facing death, we pray for peace. Through your strength and grace, Lord, given to us through the Holy Spirit, help us to extend ourselves as disciples of your love. Empower us to make choices that consider the well-being of the earth and the well-being of our brothers and sisters. This we pray in Jesus’s name. Amen.
Benediction
I leave you with these words from the book of Ephesians, chapter 2: “May God grant you the spirit of wisdom and revelation in deep knowledge. May the eyes of your mind be enlightened so you may know what is the hope of his calling.”